


A Respectable and Noble Practice

by LuckyLadyLily



Category: DCU, Wonder Woman - All Media Types
Genre: Aftercare, BDSM, Bondage and Discipline, F/F, Light Angst, Light Bondage, Mental Health Issues, Panic Attacks, Rope Bondage, Sex Work, Size Difference, Wonder Woman hires a Dominatrix, bdsm care, seriously why do super heroes never go to therapy it bothers me, tiny dom/big sub
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-05
Updated: 2019-10-05
Packaged: 2020-11-24 01:54:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20899721
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuckyLadyLily/pseuds/LuckyLadyLily
Summary: "She is a founding member of the Justice League and I slapped her face and called her a bad girl. Oh my god, I want to die."Being a pro dominatrix in the DCU can be very stressful.





	A Respectable and Noble Practice

**Author's Note:**

> The most unrealistic thing about this fic is a rope top passing up the opportunity to tie someone up with the lasso of truth.

Emily was a professional dominatrix.  


It was a skill she developed for her own enjoyment. Her size might have been a barrier, weighing in at 5’2 and 103 put a significant dent in your ability to command respect, but the challenge had only sharpened her skills. The control she could hold over a person with little more than a sharp word was intoxicating and if she was entirely honest there wasn’t anything more pleasing than desperate begging. Sadism was her drug of choice and she had become an expert chasing after that high.  


When her life had fallen apart this skill turned into a valuable asset. Her disability check simply didn’t cover the basics and she found work in bringing pleasure to those with tastes that complemented her skill. It wasn’t glamorous and it could be grueling, emotionally exhausting work, but it was something she could do and she was good at it. She eventually managed to push past the shame of turning to sex work, making it a regluar supplement to her income and bringing some stability to her life. She was proud of the work she did. She provided a valuable service, and she did it well. She was a professional.

She had some lucky breaks. A friend of a friend looking for someone discreet gave her a solid reference and a starting point for word of mouth recommendations. She built her reputation in certain seedier areas of Metropolis and if you were looking for her particular style of service “Mistress Shadow” would inevitably come up as the sexy little goth that would get you off discreetly.  


It wasn’t odd then for Emily to get unexpected messages concerning her work. Most of her clients started this way - a message in the evening while she was eating or gaming or watching TV. It was normal for her.

Emily was on her computer playing some magic. Her chat client beeped, notifying her of a new message. She swapped over to the client between turns.

BratInNeed> Em, I have a client for you.

That was a tad odd. Normally Anna would just give them the info directly. Might be the nervous sort, maybe a special request. That could mean extra if they wanted special services. She quickly typed a response and jumped back to magic.

ShadowOfDesire> ok sounds good, send them my contact info. Anything I should know?

She played out the game while she waited for a response, then turned her full attention to work as she swapped back to the client.

BratInNeed> first, you swear, absolutely swear that you can be discreet, no matter what?  
BratInNeed> I’m serious, this is really important.  
BratInNeed> I need you to swear.  
ShadowOfDesire> Anna, You know I am discreet. It’s kinda my biggest selling point.  
BratInNeed> Em, come on. This is a big deal.

This was really interesting. Who had Anna found? Some politician? A celebrity?

ShadowOfDesire> Okay, I get it. As long as nothing criminal is going on I swear I won't tell anyone anything. That good enough?  
BratInNeed> Okay, yeah. Her screen name is SapphicPrincess.  
ShadowOfDesire> Cute. Anything I should know about her?  
BratInNeed> Contact her in character, she’ll like that. Very confident in general but self conscious about wanting to sub. She has way too much responsibility and she desperately needs an outlet. Don’t be afraid to press her, she might need some coaxing to let go of control. And don’t let yourself be intimidated, she’s just another client.  
ShadowOfDesire> Whatever you say. I’ll watch for her.

It took another 3 games of magic before Emily got another message. Her heart wasn’t really in it, she was curious about this new client. Someone important enough that Anna considered it necessary to remind her girlfriend about the central pillar of her work. She wasn’t the condescending type, if she said it was serious then it had to be. But who would she know that was important enough for Anna to bust out the serious voice?

Finally as Emily was finishing up her third game she got a message. She conceded on the spot, she was a long shot to win anyway. She took a moment to pull herself together, put herself into a dominant mindset, and try to forget she was currently wearing Rainbow Dash pajamas as she switched over.

_ Push her hard. _ Emily repeated in her mind.

SapphicPrincess> Hello?  
ShadowOfDesire> Hello Princess. My brat tells me you are looking for some fun?  
SapphicPrincess> Yeah, I am.  
ShadowOfDesire> Tsk, that won't do. “Yes Mistress.” Say it.

There was a long pause. Not unexpected, the woman was probably just caught off guard, but the delay was a bit nerve racking. Anna could have read the situation wrong, maybe she shouldn't have pushed so soon. Finally the response came.

SapphicPrincess> Yes Mistress.

Emily breathed a sigh of relief.

ShadowOfDesire> Good Girl. So what is my princess looking for?  
SapphicPrincess> I have a few ideas, but I actually don’t have a lot of experience. With being a sub, I mean.  
ShadowOfDesire> New to kink?  
SapphicPrincess> Not exactly. I know a lot about it, but I’m very tall and very strong. I think everyone just assumes I am dominant and I’d rather not so kink doesn’t come up after that. It’s a bit frustrating.  
ShadowOfDesire> I can show you the ropes and give some suggestions. Mistress will take good care of you Princess.  
ShadowOfDesire> But first we need to talk about payment.  
SapphicPrincess> Oh, money won't be a problem. I can pay whatever you think is fair.  
ShadowOfDesire> I don’t come cheap.

That was both a good sign and something to watch out for. On one hand, if money actually wasn’t a problem it could mean a very big payday. On the other hand people often didn’t agree with Emily on what would constitute fair payment.

Emily jumped into her chat with Anna.

ShadowOfDesire> SP says she will pay whatever I ask, says money won't be a problem. She good for it? Won't try to rip me off?  
BratInNeed> Lol. Yeah, for sure. She’ll give a hell of a tip too. The princess thing isn’t just because it’s cute.  
ShadowOfDesire> What does that mean?  
BratInNeed> You’ll find out ;)

_ What the hell?  
_

Emily sighed. Anna liked playing games a little too much sometimes, she had chosen a very appropriate screen name. Emily jumped back into the chat with her new client.

SapphicPrincess> I am assured you are worth it Mistress.  
ShadowOfDesire> I am. Let’s talk about your interests.

\---

The client wanted to meet at a hotel. That wasn’t unusual, people often want this sort of thing happening away from their home, but Emily was not used to it being so fancy. It was a very nice hotel in the upscale area of the city, a beautiful building of glass and stone tall enough to contribute to the Metropolis skyline. It was so nice that Emily didn’t have a clear idea of how much a night in a place like this cost and she had avoided checking - knowing how much her client was spending would only make her nervous.  


But it wasn’t until her taxi pulled up to the hotel that she realized just how out of her league she was. A combination of stonework and lighting cast dramatic shadows, creating the impression of a golden glow spilling out from this monument to luxury and excess. She was dropped off in front of a large pair of double glass doors, and through them she could see a beautifully ornate lobby complete with a large fountain, marble pillars, and furniture for guests to lounge on. It was immediately obvious that she didn’t belong here. This was a place where the one percent rubbed shoulders, a place where a woman like Emily never set foot.  


She stared for a moment before a young man cleared his throat, bringing him to her attention. He was dressed in a tailored suit and a small golden name tag identified him as Micheal.

“May I take your bag Ma’am?” He offered, holding out his hand.

“Oh, no, I’ll be fine, thanks though.” She said, tightening her grip on the handle of the duffle bag she had brought with all her toys and tools inside.

“Very well. If you will follow me…”

He led her the short distance to the large doors and held one of them open for her.  


“Enjoy your stay.” He said pleasantly as she walked through, closing the door behind her.

Emily had never felt so out of place, this was not the place for black lipstick and leather chokers on pale skin. Her punk goth aesthetic clashed horribly with the ritzy upscale decor, but you didn’t become a professional dominatrix without learning how to fake confidence. She could feel eyes following her as she purposefully strode to the reception desk. The room didn’t feel unkind, but she was a small mystery that broke up the monotony of their job. She had to have made a mistake, got the wrong hotel.

“Hello Miss, can I help you?” The receptionist asked. She didn’t quite manage to keep the tone of incredulity out of her voice.

“Yes, I was invited to room 5203.” Emily said with far more confidence than she felt, hoping desperately that she hadn’t made a mistake.

“Oh, of course, She said a friend would be coming by.” The receptionist said nodding as if now everything made sense. “If you’ll be needing your own key she’ll have to sign out for it in person. Building security, I am sure you understand. Jerry can let you up though.”

She pointed towards the elevators. There was a man standing at a small podium, sort of like a ticket stand and a movie theater.

“Thank you.” Emily said, nodding at the receptionist and continuing her confident stride to the elevators.  


“5203.” She said. The man nodded, opening the elevator with a keycard, then using the same keycard in the elevator to activate the controls, selecting the very top floor.

“Turn left at the T, you can’t miss it.” He told her.

The ride up was fast and smooth. It hardly gave her time to gather her thoughts and try to shake off some of the intimidation of this place.  


The hallway the elevator opened into a wide, short hallway ending in a T. To the left there was a window, floor to ceiling, showing of a truly breathtaking view over the city. The daily planet wasn’t far from here and she could see the familiar globe on top of the building nearly at eye level. To her right the hallway was completely empty, no furniture or even doors. There were a few nice paintings on the wall. She walked to the intersection, turning left as instructed. This hallway was longer but just as empty with the exception of two doors, one on each side of the hallway, offset from each other about 20 feet. That meant there were four rooms up here, each taking up a full quarter of the top floor.  


Bloody hell.

Her door was the closer one, on the left side of the hallway. She took a moment to take a deep breath, concentrate her mind, switching to her dominant headspace and gave three firm knocks on the door. She noted that unlocked and opened almost immediately, meaning her client was waiting at the door. Someone was eager.  


“Hi. You’re her?”

The woman that greeted her was the second surprise of the night. Emily looked up, and then up some more to finally meet the eyes of the amazon of a woman standing in front of her; the woman quickly broke eye contact, as if she had been caught staring when she should not. She was at least a full foot taller than Emily with a frame to match. She had a firm, athletic build, broad shoulders and exceptionally toned arms that she held crossed in front of her chest. Her skin was a rich, earthy bronze, with raven black hair flowing down her shoulders and over her chest. In contrast to her intimidating figure the woman was wearing a light sundress, plain white cloth cut low and reaching only midway down her thighs.  


_ Oh, this is going to be fun. _

“Unless you are expecting another professional dominatrix tonight, yes. Are you going to invite me in?” Emily teased, covering her slightly stunned reaction.

“Oh, right, come in.” she said, standing aside. Emily strode inside, already taking in details and making plans as she noted the large, luxurious living space. Plenty of furniture that would work for scenes. Carpet that was soft, good for kneeling. This would do nicely.

Anna seemed to have had the right of it. Her new client held herself with confidence but was approaching this new situation with caution, maybe a bit of nervousness. It would take some doing to help her lower her guard enough to have fun. She also looked incredibly familiar, but Emily just couldn’t quite place it. An actress maybe? It wasn’t really important. Time to go to work.

“You weren’t exaggerating about your size.” Emily commented, looking back at the woman without bothering to hide her attraction.

The woman ran her hand through her hair, hunching ever so slightly as she sighed.

“Yeah, I’m sorry -”

“ _ No. _ ” Emily snapped, pointing at the ground. “On your knees!”

The woman was taken aback, stunned into silence mid sentence. With a second's hesitation she got down on her knees, the top of her head level with Emily’s chin. She watched Emily with a guarded curiosity.

Emily stepped forward and without a warning slapped her across the face. The woman flinched, turning away from the strike and lifting a hand to feel where she had been hit, clearly shocked at the treatment. Emily didn't allow her any chance to recover, taking hold of a fist full of her hair and ‘forcing’ her to look back up and lock eyes. In reality Emily doubted she could force this woman to blink if she didn’t want to, but as long as Emily had her off balance she would almost certainly go along with whatever she was led to do.  


“Bad girl. You will never apologize for your beauty.” Emily ordered with a harsh growl, tightening her grip on the woman’s hair. “If others can’t handle it that is because they are weak and we do not bow to the weak. Do you understand?”

_ God she looks familiar… _

“Yes Mistress Shadow.” The woman said with a rising blush. Emily released her hair, trailing fingers down her face and over where she had been struck. Emily felt a small shudder of excitement as the woman broke eye contact.

“That is a good slave. Eyes forward and hands clasped behind your back.” Emily said, beginning a slow circle around her slave as she followed her instructions.  


“What is your name?”

“Diana, Mistress Shadow.” She said. Emily was only half paying attention, with her hands behind her back Diana’s chest was pushed forward, giving Emily quite a wonderful view. She was sorely tempted to move towards enjoying her body but decided it would be better to continue along a more controlling route for now.

“Not anymore.” Emily said, tracing her fingers over Diana’s shoulder, enjoying how her new toy shivered slightly at the touch. “You will answer to sla-”

Emily froze mid sentence as something clicked in the back of her mind, setting off blaring alarms that drove everything else from her mind.

_ No way. _

“Diana Prince?” Emily asked, fighting hard to keep her voice level as panic rose inside her chest.

“Yes Mistress Shadow.” Wonder Woman said sheepishly.

It was a good thing that Diana was faced away from Emily or she might have seen her turn a few shades paler as the reality of the situation hit her like a freight train.  


_ Oh my god. She is a founding member of the Justice League and I slapped her face and called her a bad girl. I tried to teach Wonder Woman a body positivity lesson! Oh my god I want to die. How the hell did I miss having Wonder Woman kneeling at my feet!? _

Except… You just didn't expect to see wonder woman out of her armor, no tiara, no lasso, acting submissive and hiring a pro domme. It was so far out of the realm of believability that Emily hadn't even considered the possibility.

_ Just another client. Don't let yourself be intimidated. _

Emily was yanked back to reality as Diana began to turn, looking to see what Emily was doing.

"Eyes forward _ slave _ ." Emily growled, hoping to buy a few seconds. Diana's head snapped back forward.

Emily willed herself to calm down. She was a  _ pro _ , god damn it. She could handle this. Diana was important, sure, but here and now she was just a woman who had hired Emily to provide a valuable service and Emily was a professional that knew how to provide it. All she needed to do was get out of her own head and make it happen. Besides, if she fucked up this chance she would never forgive herself.

She forced herself to continued her slow circle around Diana, continuing to trace her fingers along her skin. As she circled she took a deep breath, inhaling, exhaling, and got herself back on stride.

“You could have warned me.” She said, finishing the circle and meeting Diana’s eyes.

“Naughty slave. I think you need to be punished.”

Diana was very clearly taken off guard. It occurred to Emily that this was probably a first for her. ‘Very tall and very strong’ indeed, who in their right mind would ever try to put Wonder Woman on her knees in the bedroom?

“You are going to punish me?” Diana managed to say.

_ You better fucking believe it. _ Emily thought. You didn't need real confidence if you can fake it and nothing helped that along like a bit of punishment.

“The problem is I am not sure how. Would my whip even sting? You requested corporal punishment so I am sure you had something in mind to accomplish it. So you tell me. How am I going to punish you?”  


“Actually, it should be rather simple. if I am bound I lose my super human attributes. I’ll be as vulnerable to your usual punishments as anyone.”

_ What the fuck. It’s like a stupid porn parody. _

“You expect me to believe your weakness is  bondage ?”  


“Bound by the hands of mortals I become as one of them.” She said, nodding. She made it sound like a spell.  


“Every demigod has a weakness that renders them mortal, that is mine. We can get the lasso of truth if you want me to prove it Mistress.” Diana said, grinning and blushing again.  


“I don’t think that will be necessary.” Emily said. What a strange weakness. No one would ever believe it.

She opened her duffel bag, fishing out a 20 foot length of rope. The psychological effect of bondage was significant enough under normal circumstances and it probably held an especially potent effect over Diana if it really did strip her powers. They had discussed some pretty elaborate fantasies but she could be overreaching in her excitement. Best to start small and work up.

“Hands up. Wrists and elbows together.” Emily ordered, enjoying a small thrill as Diana raised her hands, touching at the wrists.  


Emily found the mid point of the rope, folding it over and wrapping the doubled length around Diana’s wrists twice. She then wrapped both ends around the ropes holding Diana’s wrists, and tied off a knot to hold the binding in place and leaving about 4 feet of rope loose. It didn’t take long but Emily could see Diana becoming more and more tense as she was bound. Tense, not flustered or blushing or even using humor to control the situation. Just tension.

“How does that feel? Enough to bind you?” Emily asked.

Diana gave a few experimental tugs at the ropes and shivered, closing her eyes.

“Yes Mistress.” She said, barely managing a whisper as she stared at the rope that held her powerless.

“Are you alright? Do you remember your safe word?” Emily asked gently.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Diana said, trying and failing to keep a detached tone of voice as she twisted her wrists, pulling at the rope. “You are really good at this.”

Emily gently placed a pair of fingers on Diana’s chin, guiding her to look up and meet her eyes.

“You don’t sound fine.”

“It’s just… I’ve never let someone do this. It has happened before but not because I wanted it to.”

_ ‘Not because I wanted it to.’ Yikes, that sounds bad. _

“We’ll take a break, give you a chance to get used to it. If you want to stop here that’s fine, alright?”

“Yeah.” Diana said, slightly dazed as she nodded.

Emily guided her to her feet and then to the couch. Emily sat down first, having Diana lay down on her back across the couch with her head in her lap.

“Close your eyes and focus on your breathing. Deep breaths, 4 seconds in, 6 seconds out.” She instructed, combing her fingers through Diana’s hair and gently running her fingernails across her scalp.

They were both silent for a couple minutes while Diana took long, slow breaths. Once some of the tension had gone Diana held up her wrists, inspecting the bondage with a calmer frame of mind.

“It’s kind of pretty.” She said. “I like how the ropes are laid smooth alongside one another instead of a mess. And it’s not tight or uncomfortable, even after I pulled at it so much.”

“It’s a tie designed specifically for binding wrists or ankles in a safe and appealing way. A safe tie wont cut off circulation after a struggle and rope bondage enthusiasts often care a great deal about aesthetics. You can do some really beautiful things with ropes.”  


There were another few moments of silence. Emily waited patiently, still playing with Diana’s hair as she waited for her to decide she was ready to start again or call it off.

“I’m sorry, I’ve been tied up much worse than this but I never had this kind of reaction.” She finally said, lifting her hands to her face and rubbing her eyes with her fingers before dropping her arms down again and resting them in her lap.

“I am not exactly a qualified mental health professional, but that looked an awful lot like PTSD or something. Maybe it’s something to talk to your therapist about?”

“Uh, well…” Diana looked away sheepishly, cringing a little.

“You  _ do _ have a therapist, right?” Emily said, looking down in disbelief. “Please tell me that Princess Diana of Themyscira, the most powerful and important woman in the world, is taking care of her mental health. I need to hear these words.”

“I don’t know about the  _ most _ powerful and important…” Diana said, shrugging.

“Oh my god, really? Didn’t you almost die like three times last year?  _ How _ are you not going to therapy? What about Superman? Or Batman? Is that why he is so,” Emily gestured vaguely in the air, “ _ Batman _ ?”

Diana laughed, relaxing a little more and leaning into Emily, flexing and stretching her arms and giving Emily a minor heart attack.

“I shouldn’t laugh. Bats is a really sweet guy when he isn’t doing the whole “I am the night!” thing. Funny too. You know, I think that is why Joker hates him so much? He knows Batman is funnier.”

“You are dodging the question. I expect an answer young lady.” Emily said in an over dramatic domme voice. Diana rolled her eyes with a grin.

“As far as I know, no. Superman and Batman don’t get therapy either.”

“ _ Fuck _ .” Emily said, leaning back on the couch. “You know, it is very difficult to enjoy having a beautiful woman laying in my lap while I find out the fate of the world is in the hands of a man who dresses as a bat and refuses to go to therapy about it.”

“I think you might be making too big a deal about this.” Diana suggested.

“You all live horribly traumatizing lives, you have the weight of the entire world on your shoulders, and you don’t even take care of yourselves! I think it is a pretty big deal.”  


“Ok, maybe you have a point. It’s just hard to find the time, and we can’t appear weak.”

Emily ran a hand through her hair. You’d see it in interviews, they always  _ said _ they were just normal people but you never believe it. ‘We are just like you!’ was supposed to mean they binged Netflix while eating shitty Chinese food, not that they were suppressing a lifetime of trauma and having mental breakdowns. When does Batman sleep? The way Diana was talking he probably just doesn’t and is constantly teetering on the edge of a nervous breakdown.

_ Fuck. _

“Look, obviously I can’t make you go to therapy but I’m not going to tie you up if I am not sure it is safe for you, that would be grossly irresponsible. I know you have all sorts of fantasies you want to try but I’m not doing anything more than your wrists until you start taking care of yourself properly. And I will use the lasso of truth next time to check.”  


“Ok, I will talk to Bats and Supes, see if we can arrange something. That good enough for now? Can we continue? I’m feeling a lot better.”

“Alright.” Emily said, shifting out from under Diana and getting to her feet. She took hold of the length of rope dangling from Diana’s wrists and pulled it taut.  


“On your feet. It’s time for your spanking, naughty girl.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be a short 2.5k one shot but my stupid brain started thinking and now it's going to be more like 8k total over two chapters. Next chapter is 100% sexy times and lots of sex and I am finishing it next week, I swear to god, I am not leaving another unfinished WIP.
> 
> I am not terribly confident about this one. Hopefully people like it. I am not sure about the break in the action at the end of chapter one to do with Diana's panic attack, but every time I ask people say they like that sort of thing so I decided to keep it in. If you liked that please say something so I can reassure myself that I didn't waste 2 hours on it.
> 
> BTW, the title of this piece is a quote from the creator of wonder woman, who was super into bdsm. he called it a "respectable and noble practice". Also, the thing about Diana losing her powers when bound was actually canon for a long time because of this, look it up.
> 
> If you liked this please consider following my blog:
> 
> [LuckyLadyLily](https://luckyladylily.tumblr.com/)
> 
> I post writing updates, talk about what I am writing, answer questions, ask followers what my wife should draw, and do basically whatever I want over there. It is intended to be PG-13ish. 
> 
> I also have a blog for adult oriented stuff. On this one I reblog lots of sexy pics and talk with people about bdsm and my sex life a lot.
> 
> [LewdLadyLily](https://lewdladylily.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Comments! Please, I know it is scary on kinky stuff but no ones going to judge, least of all me.


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